


The Damned Prince Of Gotham.

by BunnyJess



Category: Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types, Red Hood and the Outlaws (Comics), Red Hood/Arsenal (Comics), Red Hood: Lost Days, Under the Red Hood
Genre: All Caste (DCU), Angst, BAMF Jason Todd, Batfamily, Big Brother Jason Todd, Damian Wayne is a Little Shit, Fighting, Fluff, Gen, Good Parent Talia al Ghul, Swearing, assassins fighting, descriptions of violence in terms of a fist fight, it's a Jay fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-15
Updated: 2019-04-15
Packaged: 2020-01-14 14:50:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,325
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18478468
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BunnyJess/pseuds/BunnyJess
Summary: Jason heard the almost silent landing behind him followed by two much less silent landings just off to the side. “This is the last time I warn you Hood, no killing in MY city.” Bruce sounded just as bleak and nonthreatening as Jason had always perceived him.(Their first fight after Jason comes back as Red Hood it's easy to understand him losing to Bruce due to his emotions. First time seeing his father since his death, after all. All the times since then...yeah DC you're under-powering our boy.This simple idea span into this one-shot. Please enjoy.)





	The Damned Prince Of Gotham.

Jason heard the almost silent landing behind him followed by two much less silent landings just off to the side. “This is the last time I warn you Hood, no killing in MY city.” Bruce sounded just as bleak and nonthreatening as Jason had always perceived him.

“ _Your_ city, please! You were barely born in the city limits! I was born here, lived here, nearly died here, and now that I’m back I’m gunna run these streets like they always shudda been. Guarantee I get rid of all the scum quicker than you have.” The highly synthesised voiced cackled through the air but that’s not how Bruce heard it. Jason had opened a com channel and was broadcasting to Bruce.

Suddenly all of Bruce’s software cut out leaving him with only manual operations. “What the hell did you just do?” Bruce screamed looking over at Dick and Tim who were also clearly experiencing technical difficulties.

“Oh just a little trick I learned in the years before I came back. A virus burst loaded onto a live com line that takes out the target’s software once the com line closes.” Jason finally turned to face the three _heroes_ of Gotham and tilted his head cheekily.

“Goddamn it you best hope this is fixable!” Jason could see Bruce was getting more and more irate, his hands balled up into fists and he was slowly changing into a fighting stance.

“Oh or what? You’ll come over here and tell me what a _naughty boy_ I’ve been and send me to the naughty step.” Jason mocked. “Get over yourself old man. You’re yesterday’s news. You all are. The Damned Prince of Gotham, **THE RED HOOD** himself is leading the headlines now.”

Jason practically heard the vein burst in Bruce’s forehead. “The only thing getting thrown out is you Hood. Don’t make me do it by force.” Bruce spat his words through gritted teeth.

“You couldn’t throw me out even if you wanted to Bruce, I’m not the fifteen-year-old soldier you abandoned to die! I’m the real. Fucking. Deal.” He said back, voice a calm growl in the charge atmosphere. “Only _The One Who Is All_ can stop me now. You’re just a child trying to chop down an oak with a foam axe.” Bruce couldn’t take it anymore and charged for Jason. He stepped forwards, throwing Bruce’s attack off by closing the distance and messing up his stride. Bruce swung desperately trying not to look the fool, but Jason calmly brought his forearm up and slapped it into Bruce’s.

The blow knocked Bruce off balance, so Jason stepped to his left but kept his leg in position. Bruce’s momentum carried him forwards and he tripped over Jason’s leg, falling clumsily to the floor. Pissed off now; Bruce regained his composure and righted himself immediately. He would take his time now, rushing in hadn’t gotten him anywhere but this was nothing new. He had taught Jason that trick. With his arms up in a fighting stance, Bruce inched closer and Jason stood frustratingly nonchalant waiting for Bruce’s next move. Bruce swung again with his right arm, but it was a feint and arced his left arm towards Jason’s ribcage.

Ignoring the obvious bluff Jason focused his attention on Bruce’s left arm, clasping it with both hands. He then stepped in and rotated, ducking under Bruce’s armpit but never letting go of the arm. Once Jason was behind Bruce, he pinned the arm to Bruce’s back and pushed it as high up as possible. Jason saw the pang of pain shoot through Bruce as he shoved Bruce’s arm into a highly unnatural position. Jason released and stepped back before kicking Bruce gently in the ass and knocking him to his knees again.

“Enough!” Yelled Bruce. “I shouldn’t have to fight you to make you listen to my orders!”

Jason laughed heavily. “That’s your first mistake _Dad_ , thinking I’m your still your soldier to order around. I’m the fucking general now and this here is a coup!” A gentle titter sound from the corner causing Dick and Tim to turn and see Damian now sitting in the corner with a small bag of popcorn. It was always an experience watching Jason wield words as masterfully as he did his body, cutting as deep as Deathstroke’s promethium blade.

Bruce started closing distance again. He threw a left and then a right but Jason simply avoided or blocked. Annoyed, Bruce span out of Jason’s reach and threw two Batarangs at Jason. Without missing a beat Jason dodged both Batarangs but rather than letting them fly past him he plucked them deftly out of the air. He looked at the new design, appearing to admire them, then threw one back at Bruce so quick he had no time to react. The perfectly aimed Batarang glanced off Bruce’s side and cut a hole in his cape, sinking into the concrete on the other side.

“HOOD NO!” Screamed Dick from the side-lines. Jason merely laughed finding it so typically hypocritical that Dick would criticise Jason for throwing the Batarang but not Bruce.

“Leave it out Wing, Hood’ll take you both down if he needs to.” Tim chimed in. His voice a whisper while his gaze never drifted from the two combatants.

Silently, Dick replied. “It’s just Jason, he can’t take both of us even on a good day.” He scoffed at the idea his _little_ brother was trying to say.

Tim shook his head. “Surely you must see that he’s holding back?” He tried to reason, but Dick just looked bemused as Bruce launched into yet another futile attack. Jason blocked rapidly now, allowing Bruce a bit more freedom. He pushed Bruce’s incoming arm away with the back of both forearms and then slammed his elbow hard just above the rising knee. He could feel the joint rearrange as they made contact and Bruce grunted in pain.

“I’m not watching this anymore!” Dick growled furiously, ever the martyr, and walked towards Jason’s exposed back.

Bruce re-centred his footing and kicked high with his left leg as Dick leapt at Jason from behind. Although he couldn’t see Dick, Jason could almost feel him flying through the air towards him. It was after all the sort of attack he’d been trained to sense while with the League and All-Caste. Without looking, Jason grabbed under Bruce’s ankle and flipped him onto his back once more, then swung his own leg high behind him catching Dick in the chest. All the air rushed out of Dick’s lungs as his feet magically found the floor and carried his weight, but as he looked up towards the fighters again, he saw Jason twisting through the air and then his foot powering towards his chest once more. With no time to block, Dick flew backwards across the roof, stumbled on a pipe and fell backwards onto the lip of the roof. His head smacked against the concrete and Dick felt his vision blur.

“TT” Damian muttered from the corner, clearly unimpressed with his eldest sibling as Tim ran over to assess Dick.

“I hate to say I told you so.” Tim said clearly as he looked Dick over for any serious injuries. “But I did say he’d take you both on.” Tim quickly concluded that Dick had suffered a heavy concussion as he could no loner bear his own weight. “Robin! Help me get Nightwing out of the danger zone?” Tim said sarcastically as Damian reluctantly got up and helped drag Dick back to where they had been stood before.

“There’s only one person in this family who is a match for Hood now Grayson, and _you_ most certainly are not it.” Damian chuckled; he was finding the whole ordeal very amusing.

“Oh and I suppose you can can you?” Tim said pointedly.

“No actually Drake, that honour falls to Cassandra.” Damian muttered, surprising the two men with his honesty and lack of superiority. “She is The One Who Is All, as she defeated her own mother and took the title some time ago. Do you not pay attention during briefings?” His voice was blank yet his body showed his disappointment in both Dick and Tim.

“Alright Bruce you might want to go on all night, but I’ve got shit to do and places to be so let’s wrap this up shall we?” Bruce shook his head to refocus and plan his next move. Jason now however, also shifted into a fighting stance the likes of which they’d never seen before and allowed Bruce to take one step closer. He’d switched into the mindset of the All-Caste’s most successful fighter. Quicker than anything Bruce had experienced in a long time; Jason stepped within his circle and brutally slammed his armoured forearm into Bruce’s face. Stunned, Bruce wobbled backwards but Jason didn’t relent. Barely had the first blow registered when Jason landed his final strike, a powerful and precise punch to the weak point on an already weakened cowl. It shattered into twenty tiny pieces, shattering the tense air with it. Unconscious from the force of the two blows, Bruce’s legs failed, and he collapsed to a heap in the middle of the roof.

“HOLY SHIT!” Tim yelled, forgetting about Dick and running over to check on Bruce. Shifting the man around, he helped him regain consciousness.

“Y’all need to know something. I took away all of R’as’ power. I’m the reason that crone hasn’t come after Timmy in over a year.” Jason threw out his arms, encompassing Tim and Bruce in the showy movement. “I was trained by people R’as didn’t think you were worthy of being trained by. Did you honestly think I’d let you see all I had before it truly benefitted me? Ducra once said to me ‘One day your heart will shine brighter than the dark fury inside of you. And that day will be glorious.’ Funny thing is, I refused to listen to that until recently. Now, my heart is what’s driving me to save Gotham. Not my rage at you. She was fucking right.”

Dick let out a derisive laugh. “You honestly expect us to believe all that crap? You’re just a madman who needs to be taken down.”

Shaking his head, Jason walked towards the newest Robin and crouched down to be at eye level. “Habibi, I’m glad you made it for the fight.” Jason said, confusing the hell out of Dick and Tim.

Damian gave him an affectionate slap to the bicep before launching himself into the other man’s arms. “Well when I heard you and father were facing off I came here straight away! Couldn’t miss the fight of the century Hermano.” Damian said gleefully. “Plus, I haven’t seen you in so long! Not since before you left to train with the All-Caste.” He let out a small sniff, trying to hold back the flood of emotions he’d always been trained to ignore. “I thought you’d forgotten about me.”

Jason let Damian down “I could never forget my little brother. You and Ummi are the only ones who have ever shown me true familial kindness.” He ruffled the black locks, so similar to his mother’s that it pulled a wistful sadness into Jason’s chest. He’d not spoke to their Ummi in almost as long as his time away from his habibi. Looking up he was confronted with looks of confusion and, in Dick’s case, jealousy over their interactions. It was clear to the former Wayne that they’d been treating Damian like _just another soldier_ and, well, that just wouldn’t do. “Well then, we have lots to talk about, don’t we?”

Without a backwards glance the two brothers readied their grapples and flew from the roof. It was easy enough to get to the hidden home Jason had cultivated in the upper east side, a quick stop at his bunker under GCPD providing them an opportunity to dump their costumes so they couldn’t be tracked. When Damian had entered the penthouse, he was surprised how quickly he found himself relaxing and feeling at home. The manor had always felt too dark and cold. Too imposing and full of ghosts. Jason’s penthouse, however, was a reflection of the man’s second life and _true_ family. There were Middle Eastern and Asian themes running through every aspect of the interior design. Sliding doors. Low seats and piles of pillows. Photos and artwork reflecting all the places he’d lived and trained that had felt suited to him. There was even an abstract photo of the sunrise from Nanda Parbat that Damian knew only those close to the Al Ghul family would recognise. It reminded the thirteen-year-old of the home he’d left. Of the cosy room the same man in front of him had helped create in his grandfather’s palace.

“Hermano, this is,” Damian felt at a loss for words. He couldn’t work out how to voice just how much the penthouse was soothing a piece of his soul he’d never realised had been torn apart.

Jason slumped onto one of the supremely comfortable sofas and tucked his legs under the blanket that was flowing out from the coffee table. He threw his arm onto the top edge of the seat and smiled softly as Damian fell into the embrace. “I wanted to bring you here sooner Habibi.” His words spoken into the soft, shiny hair tucked under his chin. “You have _always_ deserved a piece of our home in the States. Unfortunately the Bats always got in the way.” The world-class fighter couldn’t contain the growl entering his words. He’d once loved the two men he’d fought tonight. Now they were nothing more than a controlling general and his lapdog. Both just as unstable and out-of-control as the criminals they put away.

A rare moment of peace swept over the pair. Both enjoying having their brother back. It really had been too long. Bruce had always ensured Damian didn’t get to interact with the black sheep of the family. Never wanting his son to be reminded of the, to his mind, cruel ways of his birth mother. What he didn’t realise was that he’d been tearing his son apart. By making him choose. By making him denounce his heritage he’d broken his son. Luckily, Jason now had him back and was determined to mend the only brother he had.

The stillness was broken by the ringing of Jason’s phone. A phone he doesn’t often use as it’s only for his Outlaw friends and one other person. He smiles when he sees her name flashing up and swipes to answer the video call.

“Noor, I saw your fight on the news. Are you okay?” Talia rushes out, not giving a chance for greetings.   

“Goddess,” Jason sighed. He’d been expecting some form of reaction from the woman. He hadn’t been expecting this much concern though. The fact he had a mother that loved and supported him still sometimes threw the Gothamite off. “I’m fine Ummi. You know there is only one person alive who can best me and she’s in Hong Kong.” He let out a chuckle devoid of mirth. “Seems Bats can’t keep his family around him much these days.”

“You know how much I worry.” She scolded her eldest son. Her mouth opened, her next words drying up on her tongue as she saw who was snuggled up with Jason. “Damian?” The name seemed to be released in a disbelieving breath. As if the woman couldn’t rely on what her green eyes were seeing.

The young teen gave a small wave, the soft smile he’d had since being reunited with Jason only growing in warmth. “Heya Ummi. I’ve got Hermano back!”

“I can see that baby. I’m so,” the usually indestructible woman choked up, “I’m so happy for you and Noor.” She turned her piercing, if slightly watery, gaze back to her eldest. “I take it you’re going to right Gotham the way you always should have?”

Jason let out a laugh. This one finally full of mirth. A happiness he’d longed for since leaving the All-Caste returning to his heart. “That I am. This city deserves a chance to thrive, devoid of all the craziness that’s overrun it. I do have a couple of questions for both of you actually.” He turned slightly so he was looking down at Damian. “Will you help? Be _my_ Robin. Be the sort of Robin this city has always needed?” He then turned back to his Ummi. “I was thinking that it’d be good to have someone I could trust in the more political roles here. Is there anyone you could suggest or send?” He knew the answer she’d give as he asked the neutral question.

“I will be on the first flight over with all the suitable documents to run myself. We can sort out your city together, show Bruce what Gotham can really be.” Jason grinned at her. It was the exact answer he’d been expecting. “Are you going to continue as the Red Hood, Noor?”

He didn’t get a chance to reply as Damian had started to vibrate with joy on the seat beside him. He’d slipped out of his brother’s arms the second he’d asked the question. “I will join you. I think it would be goo for us both to leave our current names in the past though.”

Ruffling the young boy’s hair he thought on it all for a moment. What they were saying made sense, he just needed to let the idea settle in his mind. To see what he could become in his mind’s eye. “I think you’re right, and I think the Outlaws could all do with a change. The four of them are already on board for helping me turn this shitheap around.”

Two months later Gotham found themselves gearing up for the mayoral elections. An unexpected entry had quickly gained in the opinion polls. It was easy to see why when she had the backing she did. Koriand’r, the true Queen of Tamaran and delegate to Earth, agreed with her policies regarding immigrant workers. Black Arrow, Koriand’r’s consort who had used his technical genius to create plans to revolutionise the CCTV and citywide safety equipment, was beloved by the underdogs of the city for supporting the kindest gang leader the city had ever seen. Mistress, so named by the media for the shout she gives before throwing herself into battle, was Gotham’s very own Amazon and was more welcome in the city than any other Amazon to try before her. Ice Giant, Gotham’s answer to Superman, was welcomed into the hearts of every parent in the middle and lower classes due to his ability with children. Ghost, a small teen, always seen at the side of the true holder of Gotham’s power and friendly with the Commissioner…even if he’d only ever been seen in glimpses of photos and videos.

Finally, Red Rōnin. The masked man had taken over Gotham seemingly overnight. He was credited with the beatdown Batman had received from Red Hood, supposedly having chosen to change his persona as he denounced the Bats and all they failed to achieve. The Rōnin had even revealed how he’d been the second Robin and had been left to die by the hands of a madman. How he’d been saved by those who became his family. For all he’d done within the lowest reaches of Gotham he’d gained their love and adoration. Children were safe to wander the streets, play in the parks, dance in the rain. All because only one man held the power over the criminal element. The very same man who supported, and provided security for, Talia Miranda Head. A woman who’d found popularity with Gotham due to being a powerful single mum who was doing all she could to make Gotham safer for her two sons. A goal that finally appeared attainable with her at the centre of power.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Noor is a gender neutral Arabic name that means light. I thought it was fitting for our boy.  
> Also...I can never resist good mum!Talia.


End file.
